


you're not that kind

by shibecafe



Category: NU'EST
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Historical, Alternate Universe - Scum Villain Fusion, Future Angst, M/M, Transmigration, how to die and transmigrate into your favourite most hated anime: a guide by kim jonghyun
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-12
Updated: 2020-03-12
Packaged: 2021-02-28 01:21:13
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,877
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22985488
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shibecafe/pseuds/shibecafe
Summary: REN MEET HEEL is a badly written anime’s attempt at greek tragedy, with elements blatantly ripped off from Star Wars, bad characterisation, pointless subplots with too many filler episodes and a higher ratio of antis to fans.This year’s worst anime, hated by many, it’s incomparably bad.But, and Jonghyun will admit this freely whenever asked, there’s one thing that makes watching the show worth it: the protagonist.
Relationships: Choi Minki | Ren/Kim Jonghyun | JR
Comments: 4
Kudos: 13
Collections: Spring Blessings (Nu'est 8th Anniversary Fic Fest)





	you're not that kind

**Author's Note:**

> hello! i present to you the first part of this fic. i'd planned to finish it by the deadline, but health issues kind of nipped that in the bud! hopefully i'll get the rest of this all written and ready to post asap LOL. 
> 
> here's the prompt i snatched!: Star Wars inspired force sensitivity mixed in with Greek tragedy brand prophecy. In which person A is handsome, hero, and godlike with one shortcoming: an Achilles heel. Person A and B have trained together since young. Found company in each other (and maybe a little more) for person A to divulge his fatal weakness to person B. Person B, on the other hand, knows of the prophecy that dictates he will be the one who ends person A. 
> 
> to the person who prompted this fic - i know at the moment it's nothing like the prompt. i am so sorry i went off the rails for the start but i was inspired! as it goes on, i promise it's more like your prompt. i swear on my life. 
> 
> title from don't go breaking my heart by elton john!

_ REN MEET HEEL  _ is a badly written anime’s attempt at greek tragedy, with elements blatantly ripped off from Star Wars, bad characterisation, pointless subplots with too many filler episodes and a higher ratio of antis to fans. 

More-so, the characterisation isn’t just bad but inconsistent and generally unlikable, the character design doesn’t make any sense with the setting, the plot is almost nonexistent and things are left so unexplained that there’s more confusion over it than anything. 

This year’s worst anime, hated by many, it’s incomparably bad.

But, and Jonghyun will admit this freely whenever asked, there’s one thing that makes watching the show worth it: the protagonist. 

Ren is a tragic character; a hero through and through, but unable to trust anyone or anything. He has an Achilles Heel - the prophecy that has followed him from his youth onwards. No one really knows what the prophecy is in detail, just that someone close to him is going to be his downfall. 

Cast from his home when the local Seer bestowed the prophecy upon him, Ren had grown up on the streets, begging and peddling to get by while doing odd jobs for people willing to exploit young children for their labour. The black mark denoting his misfortune was tattooed darkly on a delicate wrist.

Being kicked from place to place, chased from towns again and again, he was beaten down into a shell of what he once was. Lack of trust in… anyone lead him to isolation. Lonely and lacking purpose, he started to take his anger out on creatures that threatened him and other kids tossed to the streets.

The emotions had sparked his ability to control the Path, making him powerful enough to easily defeat any monsters and ghouls he came across.

Shortly, his ability to control the Path became well known in the little town he’d lodged in, and tales of him dispersing evils spread through the area. People started to praise him, holding him high in standard. A local martial artist and swordsman had decided to take him in and train him. 

It didn't take long for Ren to become the pride of the town - nor did it take long for other towns to start asking for his help. 

Still, he kept the prophecy in mind, and didn’t cultivate any personal relationships as he battled and fought for people who previously scorned him.

Jonghyun thinks it’s a very lonely way to live. 

He pauses the episode he’s on - the fifty seventh out of a hundred - so he can shrug a jacket on. His dorm is cold and drafty at night during this time of year. A rumble from his very empty stomach jolts him out of his Ren Meet Heel induced stupor, making him grimace. There’s no food in the dorm, and he hasn’t been grocery shopping for a while, nor is it an appropriate time to go shopping…

Thinking, he contemplates the idea of having mozzarella sticks. The cravings for them  _ have  _ been strong recently. 

With that thought in his head, he slips a pair of sneakers on and grabs his phone. 

The night is brisk when he leaves the dorm building and walks across campus. The stars above him are faint, drowned out by light pollution but still barely visible. Clouds amble across the dark sky, lit only by the moon. All things considered, it’s quite a pleasant night. 

His steps echo slightly against the slow night - not many people are out, which is unsurprising given the fact that it’s 10:30 at night. Jonghyun wonders why he thought this was a good idea, but keeps going. 

It normally doesn't take long to get to McDonald’s from his dorm, and he knows the way like the back of his hand, so he just spaces out as he walks. 

There’s an assignment due in two weeks that he’s only half finished. He has a meeting with Seonho and Hyunbin tomorrow, too. 

He doesn’t notice the lights heading for him until it’s too late. 

Jonghyun looks up momentarily, and then it’s all dark. 

-

Tingling bites at his extremities as consciousness comes back slowly. Jonghyun tries to turn over, but something hinders him, holding him down in a warm embrace. 

He slowly opens his eyes. Above him, a traditional ceiling has what look like talismans hanging from the rafters, and paper windows are opened to let in a chill breeze. 

To his side, a boy of about thirteen or fourteen shoots up from his slouched sitting position with a gasp when he notices that Jonghyun is awake. “Ah, Young Master! You’re awake!” 

“What?” Before Jonghyun can say anything to the boy, he dashes from the room. 

Confusion settles heavily around Jonghyun. He decides to look around the room. It’s a very traditional space; the windows are open to a deck, which faces a courtyard opposite to another section of the house. 

A well tended garden fills the courtyard with pretty bushes and an immaculate pond. 

The sight of everything makes Jonghyun’s head spin - where the hell is he? 

The same boy from earlier bustles in with an adult carrying a wooden box hot on his heels. “Young Master,” The man intones. “How do you feel?” 

_ Confused, insane, lost, dizzy,  _ his brain supplies. Instead, he just says, “Dizzy. Where am I?” 

The man sets down his box next to the bed and kneels. He holds Jonghyun’s wrist lightly and hums. “You’re in your room, Young Master. You collapsed while training your golden core in the library. Your friend - Young Master Hwang - carried you back here.” He looks up at Jonghyun through his lashes. “You’ve been asleep for two weeks.” 

“Ah,” He says. The young boy fidgets next to the bed. “Could you get me a mirror, please?” 

The boy startles but nods and quickly fetches a bronze mirror. He lifts it up in front of Jonghyun, whose eyebrows furrow in confusion. The face looking back at him is young and unfamiliar, with long hair tied back with a blue ribbon. Cheeks rounded with youth, he assumes the face is that of an eleven or twelve year old. 

Discomfited, he looks away from the mirror. 

Not long after the doctor - because that’s what the man is, Jonghyun quickly realises - finishes checking up on him, a woman bustles in. Her robes are a pale blue, similar in style to the robes worn by the characters of those danmei novel characters that Seonho likes to read. It makes no sense. 

“Jonghyun-ah,” She cries, rushing up to the side of the bed to grab his hand. “Oh, you foolish boy. You scared me half to death, do you know that?” 

“Oh,” He untangles his hand from hers gently. “I apologise.” She looks stricken at him shaking her hand off. 

She turns a poisonous look at the doctor. “What’s wrong with him? Why is he acting like this?” 

The doctor bows his head. “Madam, there’s nothing physically wrong with him. His meridians are all in line, his spiritual energy is flowing smoothly, his body is in good shape. He might just be disoriented after being asleep for two weeks.” 

Jonghyun frowns at being spoken about as if he isn’t there. “I feel fine.” 

The woman casts a wary look at him. “If you were fine, you wouldn’t be so well behaved. As my son, I’m going to worry about you when you aren’t acting like yourself.”

_ Son son son son son,  _ the more time he spends in this world, the more confused he feels. He stays quiet. The doctor stands. “I would recommend that the Young Master gets cleaned up, eats a good meal, and goes out to get some sun. He’s been cooped up in this room for far too long.” 

“Thank you, Physician Choi.” With the dismissal, he bows to the two nobles and leaves the room. Jonghyun listens as his footsteps click on the walkway. His mother clicks her fingers at the servant boy. “Youngmin. Make yourself useful and warm a bath for Jonghyun-ah, will you?” 

“Yes, Madam.” The boy bows to them both and leaves. 

After he’s gone, his mother settles a warm hand on Jonghyun’s head. Her voice is soft again, compared to the icy tone she used with the servant. “My son. You truly terrified your father and I.” 

Demurely, he lowers his eyes. “I’m sorry, Mother.” 

“Physician Choi isn’t here anymore, Jonghyun-ah. You don’t need to act like this when it’s just us alone.” She sighs.

Jonghyun frowns. He really, really doesn’t like the way the original goods seemed to have acted. His mother ruffles his hair. They sit quietly for a few minutes before Youngmin comes back in. “Young Master, your bath is prepared.” 

His legs feel like jelly when he first stands up. He wobbles for a second before his footing steadies. His mother hovers by his shoulder as he stretches sleepy muscles and pops stiff joints. Youngmin leads the way to the bath silently. 

He’s lead into a steam warmed room, with a large wooden bathtub in the middle, steam rising from the water to form a gentle mist that hangs in the air. Youngmin closes the door after he enters. Jonghyun begins to take off the sleep shirt he’s wearing before Youngmin makes a startled sound, hurrying over from his place at the door. 

“Apologies for taking so long to help, Young Master. Let me.” Jonghyun stands stock still as Youngmin strips him of his clothes and guides him into the bathtub. The water is perfectly heated, smelling sweet but not strong. Little bottles of oils sit next to the tub next to a neatly folded cloth.

Slightly mortified, Jonghyun just sinks into the water. Youngmin picks up a large cup and scoops some water into it. He tells Jonghyun to close his eyes, before tipping the water onto his hair. With careful hands, he works sweet smelling soap into his hair, nails scratching pleasantly against Jonghyun’s scalp. 

Despite this body having been asleep for a long time, Jonghyun feels the call of dreams as a result of the methodical massaging. He dozes lightly as Youngmin cleans him up. When Youngmin tells him he’s done, he blinks slowly until his brain catches up with the world.

His embarrassment from before is nowhere to be found as Youngmin dries him off and starts to dress him in soft blue robes. He sits down when Youngmin directs him to, and sighs as Youngmin dries his hair. The feeling of a comb going through the long strands is calming. 

When Youngmin ties up the last ribbon, Jonghyun feels like he’s made of jelly. 

“Thank you.” He says, stretching as he gets up. 

Youngmin looks startled. “Ah, you don’t need to thank me, Young Master.” 

With a wave of his hand, Jonghyun smiles. “Stop calling me that. Jonghyun is fine.” He pauses. “At least, when we’re alone, I guess.” He nods resolutely. 

Youngmin avoids his eyes. “I wouldn’t presume to do so,” He shuffles awkwardly. 

Jonghyun tilts his head to the side. “But you would presume to ignore an order?” He can’t but smile when Youngmin gets flustered.

“O-of course not You- Jonghyun.” He refuses to make eye contact after. 

Satisfied, he slips some shoes on. Time to navigate this strange world.

**Author's Note:**

> no one is allowed to bully me for adding my main interest (scum villain) to everything. i'm valid! 
> 
> tell me your thoughts in the comments, or if you’re shy, you can find me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/shibecafes), tumblr and [curiouscat](https://curiouscat.me/nezha)!!!


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